living in Italy

In the Vatican-owned building where Ratzinger lived, the new McDonald's is open 7 days a week. The rent is the equivalent of 6,500 Big Macs, per month. The company claims that their restaurants are designed with respect to the historical...

January 6 is a national holiday in Italy commemorating the 12th day of Christmas, when the Three Kings or Wise Men arrived at the manger bearing gifts for baby Jesus. It's called Epiphany and it's when Italians celebrate the tradition...

Remembering a New Year's Eve in Italy with an international group of guests reminds us of the joys of knowing our neighbors --across the yard, across borders, hopefully, among nations. When abroad, I am proud to represent a country whose...

The leisure-time options in small town Italy are rich and truly entertaining. With a healthy sense of humor and joy in tradition, there's plenty to do if you just look around you. There is the annual Castagnata, the Saint's Day,...

We were half awake at about 7:45 on Sunday morning when we heard a loud, deep rumbling. The house began to shake violently. The noise and shaking lasted about 30 seconds, which of course felt much longer. We quickly got...

With centuries of traditional culture behind them, Italians have a gift for finding totally satisfying entertainment in simple pleasures, or just in the act of enjoying each other's company.  Move over, Netflix!

As foreigners visiting Italy every year, we find there are so many cultural idioms we will never understand, like the rules about when to sit at the dinner table or the no cappuccino after 11am unwritten law. But there are...

Despite coming to Italy together as a family for some 13 years now, our language skills have improved very little. Our fumbling mistakes are a source of total hilarity to us. Italians, though, are tolerant and encouraging when foreigners clumsily...

The time has come for us to get online. After a day in the quietness of the town, it's good to be reconnected with our imperfect world. Our daughter will go to college and we'll be able to see her...